As students up and down the country prepare themselves for the final part of their exams, chances are that cramming will feature in their revision at some point along the way. So here we have our latest Word of the Week: potasser! Allez, on se met au boulot ! đđ Word of the Week: Potasser. …
Category: Language
Word of the Week: ‘faire carton plein’
The 70th Cannes International Film Festival finished last night, with Swedish film The Square clinching the top prize, the Palme d’Or. In honour of Cannes, I’ve chosen a (vaguely) film-related mot de la semaine: ‘faire carton plein’. Word of the Week: Faire carton plein. How to pronounce it: Fair kahr-tohn plahn (the ‘n’ at the end…
Word of the Week: avoir le tracÂ
Bonsoir mes amis! So once again, all too soon, summer exam season has crept up on us. We’ve all been there, scribbling away furiously, with one eye on the clock (which seems to be ticking away at twice its normal speed) and the other on our question papers, making sure we’ve answered everything as clearly…
Word of the Week: ‘quinquennat’
Now that Emmanuel Macron has been elected the new president of France (and moved into the ĂlysĂ©e Palace in Paris), time for yet another presidential-themed mot de la semaine! đ«đ· (In other news, have a watch of these hilarious parodies of Macron – and Le Pen – from the satirical TV show Les Guignols. It’s the…
Word of the Week: ‘flagada’Â
Word of the Week: Flagada. How to pronounce it: Flah-gah-dah. What it means in English: It’s an informal way of saying you’re really tired: ‘shattered’ would be a good translation in English. Where does it come from? According to the link here, ‘flagada’ was first used in 1936 to mean ‘tired’. How to use it…
Word of the Week: ‘appuyer sur le champignon’
First of all, for any British readers, I wish you a very happy May Bank holiday! đ And in keeping with the spirit of the blog (or if you’re reading this from France), bonne fĂȘte du Travail! This week, I’ve chosen an expression that comes up among my all-time favourites (mainly because it sounds so…
Word of the Week: ‘isoloir’
Bonjour mes choux! As well as being St George’s Day, yesterday also saw the voting process get underway in mainland France for the first round of the country’s presidential election this year, after citizens of overseas French territories went to the polls on Saturday. Described by The Guardian as ‘unpredictable‘ and ‘an exceptionally tight race‘,…
Word of the Week: ‘une cloche’
Joyeuses PĂąques Ă tous! đ Happy Easter everyone!! đ° As it’s lundi de PĂąques (Easter Monday) today, I thought it would be nice to have an Easter-related word this week đ In English-speaking countries, the Easter bunny (or le lapin de PĂąques, if you will) is in charge of making sure all of the chocolate…
Word of the Week: ‘canicule’Â
After an unusually sunny weekend (where parts of Britain were apparently hotter than the south of France!!), I bring you our latest mot de la semaine – ‘canicule’! Word of the Week: Une canicule. How to pronounce it: Can-ee-cool. What it means in English: A heatwave. Where does it come from? According to this definition…
Word of the Week: poisson d’avril
Last Saturday (1st April) was April Fools’ Day, the one day where trickery, mischief and the art of pulling off the most creative prank possible is celebrated. So in honour of April 1st (and to show my solidarity for any unsuspecting April Fools who put up with any practical jokes at their expense), here’s a…
Word of the Week: ‘chou’Â
A couple of weeks after ‘cornichon‘, let’s have a look at ‘chou’, another vegetable-themed word. Word of the Week: Chou. How to pronounce it: Shoo. What it means in English: While ‘chou’ commonly translates into English as ‘cabbage’, it can also mean ‘cute’ or it can be used as a term of endearment, like ‘sweetheart’…
Word of the Week: ‘hĂ©risson’
This week, let’s have a look at the word ‘hĂ©risson’ which, as well as being one of my favourite French words, also happens to be one of my favourite animals. Word of the Week: ‘HĂ©risson’. How to pronounce it: Ay-ree-sohn. What it means in English: Hedgehog. Where does it come from? The word ‘hĂ©risson’…
French Affliction 